The present invention relates to a rotary device used in driving game machines in which a simulated car is steered on simulated roads displayed on a monitor and like game machines in which other rotational operations are made. The present invention relates also to a game machine with the aforementioned rotary device.
Driving game machines have been known in which simulated roads and a simulated car are displayed on a monitor, and a steering wheel provided in front of the monitor is operated to change the direction of the simulated car according to a curved or winding degree of the simulated roads.
In such driving game machines, forces which act on the steering wheel when an automobile is actually driven are created in a simulated manner. For example, there are known a technique of giving a rotational reaction force, which increases as the steering wheel is rotated to either left or right side from its neutral position, to the steering wheel or steering shaft and a technique of shaking the steering wheel in forward and backward directions within a specified range in the case that the simulated car contacts or collides with an other car or a wayside obstacle displayed on the monitor in a simulate manner. Electric motors have been conventionally used as a means for shaking the steering wheel in forward and backward directions within a specified range. If a small electric motor is used, there is a problem of relatively easily damaging the electric motor by a rotational force of the steering wheel exerted by a game player. In order to solve such a problem, a large motor having a relatively large torque is necessary. However, such a motor disadvantageously leads to a narrow space around the steering shaft and a higher price.
In view of the problems residing in prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide a rotary device for a game machine which device can suppress an occurrence of breakdown and can be smaller and inexpensive.
In order to fulfill the above object, a rotary device for a game machine, according to the present invention, comprises:
a rotatable member rotatable by a game player,
a rotatable shaft having the rotatable member mounted thereon,
a bias unit for biasing the rotatable shaft to its neutral position thereof, and
a braking unit having a contacting member and a contacted member which are opposed to each other and adapted to give a rotational resistance to the rotatable shaft based on a contact resistance created by a variation of a distance between the contacting member and the contacted member.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon a reading of the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.